Heating and Cooling in Birmingham, MI

Birmingham heating and cooling for old homes and new

Birmingham's housing splits two ways. By Census Bureau estimates, about half the homes here were built before 1960: about a third date from the 1940s and 1950s and roughly one in six from before 1940. At the other end, about one home in five has gone up since 2000. So a pre-war house with an older heating system can sit next door to a recent build with a thermostat on every floor.

Maverick Heating and Cooling is family-owned and has been at this for 7 years. We show up on time. We find the cause, not just the symptom. We explain what is wrong, what your options are and what each one costs before any work starts, and the job is 100% satisfaction guaranteed. Call 248-930-2080. We also serve Bloomfield Hills, Royal Oak and the other communities in our service area.

What Birmingham's older homes need

A house built before 1960 has likely had several heating systems, and the pipes or ducts feeding the current one may be original. Many have forced air through ducts sized long before air conditioning was part of the plan, and cooling added later can struggle on them. Others are heated by a boiler and were never given ducts. We do not work on boilers, but we can still cool that house, usually with a ductless system.

Age matters most when a repair gets expensive. Furnaces typically last 15 to 20 years. A common guide is that if a repair costs more than half the price of a replacement, replacing deserves a serious look. We will give you both numbers and an honest opinion, then leave the choice to you. Here is how we handle furnace installation.

What Birmingham's newer homes need

Some newer homes have multi-zone equipment: motorized dampers in the ducts and a thermostat for each zone, so one system can treat floors separately. A damper that sticks or a zone control that fails will leave one floor too warm and another too cold while the equipment itself is fine. We diagnose and repair zoning systems as well as the furnace and air conditioner behind them.

Newer homes often have high-efficiency furnaces too. They make water as they run, and a blocked drain can shut one down. Where the vent pipes leave through a side wall, keep them clear of snow.

Birmingham utilities and electric heat

More than eight in ten Birmingham homes heat with utility gas, and DTE supplies the electricity. About one home in six heats with electricity, a share that likely reflects the condos and apartments downtown. City water comes from the Great Lakes Water Authority, so private wells are not typical here. Scale still builds up in a tankless water heater over time, and descaling is part of its upkeep.